Review
The Children of Men - P D James
First published in 1992, The Children of Men by P.D. James took some time to ensnare me. For at least the first two chapters, I hemmed and hawed about continuing but then amongst the apparent humdrum, a sneaking itch sets in, one which you need to follow to be satisfied.
The Children of Men is set in the not too distant future of 2021 and begins with the ignominious death of the last child to be born on the planet. He was 25 when he died having done nothing Read more [...]

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Review
Keeping Watch
Laurie R King
Psychological thriller isn't usually my genre but Keeping Watch is one of the most brilliantly written books I've read in a long while. Laurie King writes with the acuity of the master, never tripping throughout this exquisitely appalling tale.Jamie is a thirteen year old boy whose father is a con man extraordinaire and who has an unusual and terrifying occupation. Allen, a Vietnam vet, is a man dealing with the psychological fallout of his year fighting Read more [...]

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The Soul's Religion - Thomas Moore
Cultivating a profoundly Spiritual Way of Life. A companion to Care of the Soul.
HarperCollins
The Soul's Religion is essentially a rendition of Thomas Moore's personal journey through and towards spirituality.
He touches again and again upon his birth given religion, Catholicism, but stands apart from it, open to the entry of other forms of spiritual understanding. While he is willing to acknowledge the shortcomings of Catholicism, he appreciates also the Read more [...]

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The Stranger At The Palazzo D'Oro
Paul Theroux
Hamish Hamilton Books
Paul Theroux creates highly evocative ambience in each of the six tales in his collection, The Stranger at the Palazzo D'Oro. In the title story, about bored wealthy tourists in an Italian seaside resort of the early sixties, we follow an older man revisiting his past, comprehending finally the events of forty years earlier. The tale's end alleviated my discomfort, but be ready for the S&M slant.
The ensuing set of three Read more [...]

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The Seal Wife - Kathryn Harrison
Fourth Estate Fiction
Kathryn Harrison's latest novel is set in Anchorage, Alaska. The year is 1915. Bigelow, product of an emotionally starved upbringing, has been ordered by the Weather Bureau for whom he works, to open up for them in Alaska. He must set up a weather forecasting station in the frozen frontier town of Anchorage, a town with it's feet still in the mud, without a port, with only a handful of women and over 3,000 men.
Industrious and intent, Read more [...]